The Dodo Archive

Man Jumps In Water To Save Drowning 400-Pound Bear

What do you do when you're a 400-pound black bear who smells something oh-so-delicious inside your neighbor's trash?

You walk up and eat the garbage. No questions asked.

For one bear in 2008, that spur of the moment decision was the first event in what soon became the craziest day of his life.

Animal control soon arrived to tranquilize the bear, but the sedative didn't fully kick in right away, and the semi-drugged-up bear began to wander.

Acting adventurously in his purple haze, the bear made his way to the ocean for a swim - only a matter of moments before the tranquilizers were set to take away his muscle control.

"He reared up on his hind legs like you'd see in a movie, just out of the water, and he fell straight back - just a huge splash. He went under for about two or three seconds," said Adam Warwick, a biologist working with the Wildlife Commission, in an interview with WCTV.

That's when 200-pound Warwick decided he had what it took to rescue the 400-pound bear from drowning.

Warwick grabbed the bear by the scruff on his back and pulled his head above the surface.

Under different circumstances, a sober black bear could have easily killed the man, but that was never a concern for Warwick.

He led the bear back to land, where the unsteady bear soon tumbled from exhaustion.

A tractor was at the foot of the shore to help transport the bear back to safety.

Remarkably, the experience left both the man and the bear without injury.

"I got a few cuts on my feet from the claws and the barnacles, but other than that, I'm doing good." told CBS News.